Mechanic endlessly amassing troops in the apocalypse

In that case, perhaps we can spare his life for now and observe him for a while before making any further decisions.

After all, he is most familiar with the situation in the market, so you can ask him if you encounter any problems. Moreover, the matter of the Survivor Base is indeed good information. After finding out the details, you can find an opportunity to recruit the people from the Survivor Base as a reserve force for your faith points!

Thinking of this, Li Fei nodded and said, "Okay, I can trust you. You go ahead and lead the way."

"Great!" Mei Xicai was overjoyed and quickly walked forward.

Li Fei led the team behind them. As soon as they entered the first floor of the mall, a mixture of dust, mold, and a faint, nauseating fishy smell hit them.

As the flashlight beam swept across, it was revealed that most of the original counters and shelves had been roughly pushed over and dismantled, with debris and clutter deliberately cleared to the surrounding corners, forming a messy boundary.

Most striking was a large area in the center of the ground, its color noticeably darker than the surrounding tiles, the source of that faint, fishy odor. Scattered there were many fragments of bone and cartilage of unknown origin.

"Is this... the place where that monster usually stays?" Li Fei asked in a low voice.

"Yes, yes, Brother Fei." Mei Xicai's voice was a little tight. "Tian Kai... he feeds people down every now and then, which is why that thing hasn't gone crazy. That thing doesn't have much intelligence and doesn't care who's above it; it only attacks moving targets."

Li Fei nodded and followed them to the center of the mall. Sure enough, the original escalators and part of the stairs had been completely destroyed, with debris piled up below, cutting off any possibility of going up or down.

After Mei Xicai gave the signal, a simple but sturdy wooden ladder was lowered upstairs.

Li Fei did not choose to climb the ladder. His mech glowed faintly, and after a short burst of power, he leaped directly onto the nearly seven-meter-high second-floor platform.

When he steadied himself and saw the scene before him by the moonlight, even with his mind tempered by the apocalypse, he felt a chill run straight to the top of his head and his stomach churn.

As far as the eye can see.

Damaged tents and filthy bedding were piled haphazardly in the corner, and the ground was filthy, mixed with food scraps, excrement, and dark, suspicious stains.

The air was thick with a stench, a nauseating mixture of sweat, urine, and rotting food.

Then he saw dozens of figures huddled in the shadows, most of them barely clothed and emaciated.

The women were almost all naked, their skin covered in dirt, bruises, and scabbed wounds. Their eyes were empty and numb, like dolls whose souls had been taken away. They did not react to Li Fei's appearance, but instinctively curled up tighter.

A few men were bound in an extremely humiliating manner with rough ropes and thrown to the ground like livestock to be slaughtered, their eyes still filled with fear.

Then, Li Fei saw something in the corner.

A pile of gnawed limb bones and a relatively "fresh" half-corpse were left there, with internal organs spilling out.

There was even a hearth made from a broken tin bucket, filled with cooled ashes and a few charred bone fragments.

After Su Wan'er climbed up, her face turned deathly pale, and she covered her mouth and began to gag.

Li Fei clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking. He slowly turned his head, his gaze like a tangible icicle, and looked at Mei Xicai, who had just climbed up. "Are these things none of your business?"

Mei Xicai's legs went weak at the sight of that gaze, and he almost knelt down. His face turned deathly pale, and he frantically waved his hands, "Brother Fei! I...I swear, that was done by Tian Kai and Baldy!...I never touched it! I...I have evidence!" He scrambled towards the bound men as if grasping at a straw, "They know! They can testify!"

He frantically untied the ropes binding one of the men, who was so weak he could barely sit up. Mei Xicai supported him, asking urgently, "Old Wu, tell me! Did I participate in...that? Did I harm you?"

The man called Old Wu, his eyes clouded, glanced at the terrified Mei Xicai, then at the heavily armored and menacing Li Fei, and seemed to understand something. He opened his mouth, a hoarse voice escaping his throat: "Brother Mei... he really didn't lay a hand on us... he didn't eat us... he even secretly gave us food..."

The other men who had been untied also nodded weakly in agreement.

Su Wan'er suppressed her discomfort, but her sharp gaze fell on the numb women, her voice filled with suppressed anger: "And what about them? You also said you didn't touch them?"

Mei Xicai's face flushed instantly. He lowered his head and said in a voice so low it was almost inaudible, "I... I'm naturally bad in that area... Tian Kai and the others know that... and they often make fun of me about it... I... I can't get an erection with women."

Li Fei stared at him for a few seconds. Combining the little bit of faith value on the panel with the testimonies of these survivor men, he could basically conclude that he wasn't lying.

He may not have been directly involved, but that does not absolve him of his guilt as an accomplice and his willingness to live a life of ignominy.

Li Fei stopped looking at him, took a deep breath, and turned to the crowd.

His voice wasn't loud, but it was very clear: "Everyone, listen up."

A pair of numb eyes turned to look at the tall, metallic figure.

Seizing the opportunity to shine, Mei Xicai rushed to Li Fei's side and shouted loudly to the crowd, "Everyone! Look closely! This brother! He killed Tian Kai! That devil is dead! Baldy is dead too! They've come to save us! We're saved! From now on, we can live with dignity!"

"Tian Kai...is dead?"

"The bald guy is dead too?"

"Is he really... dead?"

Like cold water being poured into boiling oil, the crowd erupted in disbelief, and then, a glimmer of hope gradually ignited in those empty eyes.

Several of the bound men struggled to stand up, while the women huddled together, sobbing softly.

Li Fei clapped his hands slightly, signaling for silence. The crowd quickly quieted down, and all eyes turned to him.

"Now I'm giving you two choices," Li Fei said calmly and firmly. "Do you want to continue struggling to survive in this apocalypse, perhaps dying at the hands of monsters one day, or are you willing to join our team and become a truly alive person?"

Every word struck the survivors' hearts.

After only a brief silence, the crowd erupted in cheers.

"I'm in!"

"I'm joining too!"

"Me too!"

……

As everyone expressed their stance, the faith value on the panel in front of Li Fei increased rapidly, only stopping when the total reached forty points.